A New Life
by SaffronAngel
Summary: Bella's trapped in Vegas. This is where the M rating comes in kiddies....
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: Not mine. God do I wish though.

SUMMARY: Bella didn't try to follow Edward into the woods when he dumped her. What happens next?

A/N: I know that some of you wanted the sequel to Flightless first. But this one wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it. Please forgive me. I need your help, my loyal readers. I'm not sure about which pairings to use in this one. Maybe you guys could tell me what you think.

* * *

"Bella, I don't want you to come with me."

"You … don't … want me?"

"No."

"Well, that changes things."

She didn't hear anything else he said. She was too busy planning her getaway. She knew that she couldn't stay here. Not when everywhere she went was another reminder of how little she had meant to him. She had always known this day would come. Ever since they'd started seeing one another. She knew she wasn't good enough for him. She couldn't be. He was perfection and she wasn't.

Then, he extracted her promise not to do anything reckless or stupid, claiming it was for Charlie's sake. "And I'll make you a promise in return. I promise that this will be the last time you'll see me. I won't come back. I won't put you through anything like this again. You can go on with your life without any more interference from me. It will be as if I'd never existed."

"Not a promise you can make, Edward," she softly said. "Because I'll never forget you. I'll never forget the way you tore my heart out and burned it to a crisp in front of me." With that she turned around and walked to the house, leaving him watching from the woods.

After a moment, he turned and fled.

****

Bella stormed into the house and ran upstairs. She grabbed the bag she had left unpacked since the day she'd arrived in Forks. She had held the same bag packed in Phoenix. It was her quick escape bag.

Her hands shaking, she opened up her album to the picture of her and Edward together. It was the one she had felt was stiff and formal. At least she still had the pictures to remind her why she should never get too close to anyone.

Because they always walked away.

She sat down at her computer and started typing.

When she finished, she printed off a copy of the letter and turned off the monitor. Tears fell as she sealed the envelope.

****

Pulling up in front of the Cullen's former home, Bella sighed. She knew that she had to do this. It was the only way for her to move on in any way.

She walked up to the door. It was locked. She walked around the house to the back door.

Unlocked. "Thank you, Alice," she whispered with a sad smile. Walking in, she went to the main room and put the envelope on the dark blue dust cover that hid the piano. The white stood out from clear across the room.

She allowed a single tear to fall on it before turning around and leaving the house, locking the last door. "Goodbye. I hope that you all have a great life."

Climbing back into her truck, Bella brushed the hair back from her face before starting it up and driving away. She knew that she had to put some distance between her and Forks before Charlie got home and realized that she was gone.

*****

The minute Charlie walked into the house he knew that something was wrong. It was too quiet. Bella's truck hadn't been in the driveway and no lights were on.

"Bella? Bells, you here?" When no answer came back to him, Charlie started to feel worry creeping up on him. He walked through the house calling Bella's name. By the time he had checked every room in the house, he was using her full name. "Isabella Marie Swan, you had better answer me right now."

He picked up the phone. "Billy, I need some help. Bella's gone.


	2. Chapter 2

DISCLAIMER: Nope not mine. I can dream. Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer and White Horse belongs to Taylor Swift.

SUMMARY: Bella has decided that she can't stay where she has constant reminders of Edward and his family. Where is she going?

* * *

Bella stopped at the hotel in Port Angeles for the night. Her arm was hurting a bit and she was tired. She couldn't believe that Edward had actually left her. The family had already left and he had just stayed behind to tell her goodbye.

That night was filled with dreams about the way he'd left her. The images blurring together as he walked away from her, not seeming to care that he'd destroyed her.

Finally, she gave up trying to sleep. She turned on the television and settled in to watch infomercials all night. She pulled out the brand new journal she planned on keeping and started writing.

_Dear journal, _

_I'm writing this so that I can keep track of what I'm feeling and doing. Never know. It might come in handy some day. _

_Edward left me today. He walked me into the woods and dumped me. He said he was tired of pretending to be something he's not – human. He said I wasn't good for him. Like I didn't already know that. If only he knew how many times I had asked myself how long he was going to go on pretending that he really cared about me. I always wondered why he was with me when so many more beautiful girls wanted his attention._

_But to him, and his vampire family apparently, I was a distraction. He actually smiled when he told me that his kind was easily distracted. I can't believe it. I just can't believe that I didn't scream and cry._

_Well, I cried but not until he couldn't see me. I left them a note when I left town. I don't know if they'll ever see it but I felt like I had to do it. I had to tell them goodbye since they didn't tell me. _

_But I won't ever forget what they did to me. I can only hope that I can find a new start somewhere that I won't be reminded of them every time I turn around._

_Tomorrow is a new day and I'll see what happens then. I plan on closing out my college account and taking the money and running. The plane tickets to Jacksonville are in my bag. Maybe I'll see about turning one of them in for a different destination and cashing in the other. It would get me a little further down the road._

Write more later.

She stretched out under the covers after setting up a wake up call for seven a.m. even though she didn't think she was going to fall asleep.

*****

Alice and Jasper sat beside a stream after a hunt. Alice was rambling on about a designer who had decided to unveil his new line in Las Vegas this year. Of course she was planning on attending and wanted Jasper to go with her. He had already decided that he would go just to make Alice happy.

Suddenly, Alice went quiet. Waves of sadness and frustration rolled off her toward him. He whipped his head around to look at his wife. She was shaking. "Bella, no."

"What do you see, Alice?"

"The truck broke down, stranding her on the side of the road. Tears are running down her face. She looks so sad and lonely, Jazz. She hit the steering wheel and the skin split. She's bleeding."

"Where, Alice? Where is she?"

"I don't know. I don't think she's in Forks anymore. She looks lost." The distant look in Alice's eyes was almost frightening Jasper. She'd never been in a vision this long. "She's out of the truck and walking. She's carrying a duffel bag. Jazz, I can't see where she is! I just don't know!"

"It's okay, Alice. Just focus on Bella. What's she doing?"

"She's walking along and kicking a stone. She's acting like she's angry." Alice winced. "She seems to be swearing. A car's pulling up beside her. It's a Mercedes just like Carlisle's."

"What next?"

"She's getting in the car. It's driving away. Jazz, she walked for so long before anyone came along."

"It's okay. She's going to be fine. Can you see anything else?"

Alice shook her head, her eyes clearing. "Nothing. Jazz, promise me she'll be okay. Promise me."

"I promise." He pulled Alice into his arms. "I promise." He didn't know how he'd keep the promise but somehow he'd find a way.

*****

In Forks, the next day, several of the boys from the reservation showed up at Charlie's house early. They'd searched late into the night for Bella and some had continued searching when everyone else had stopped.

"Where do you want us to search today, Chief?" Sam Uley asked. His friends were helping to scour the woods for the chief's daughter.

"I want someone to go to the Cullen house and look around. I don't want any damage done to the house and no breaking in. If it looks like she's there, call me and we'll go in legally. That way there's no accusing anyone of anything improper."

"I'll go, Charlie. If she's there, we'll find her." Sam walked out of the house and headed out, vowing that if the Cullens had hurt Bella, there would be some deaths in Forks.

*****

Sam got to the Cullen's house to find Bella's scent. But it wasn't fresh. It was obvious she had been there the day before. But she wasn't there now. He looked through a couple of windows and saw the white envelope on the piano.

He pulled out his cell phone. "She's not here. But she has been recently. I'm going to see if I can figure out which direction she went in her truck from here."

"Keep us posted, Sam. Don't do anything stupid."

"I won't, Billy. I just want to find her and bring her home safe."

"We will, Sam. Not to worry." They hung up and Sam shed the sweatpants he was wearing before changing his form. His nose was much stronger this way.

*****

Bella was up with her wake up call in the morning. By nine o'clock she had closed out her college account and started to head back east. She was hoping to avoid Forks entirely.

"He's probably got the whole town looking for me by now." Just then something occurred to her. "Jake told me those stories about the tribe. Edward's family being vampires was true. What if the rest of it is too? What if there are werewolves tracking me right now? After all, Billy IS Dad's best friend and an elder of the tribe. Could he get them to track me if it is true?"

She flipped through the stations on the radio, smiling when she would come across something that one of the family had listened to. She thought about the way Emmett had left the room as she opened presents to install the stereo.

She came across a country station. The song 'White Horse' by Taylor Swift was playing and she listened to the words.

_Say you're sorry that face of an angel _

_Comes out just when you want it to_

_As I paced back and forth all this time _

_Cause I honestly believed in you _

_Holding on the days drag on _

_Stupid girl I should've known I should've known _

_I'm not a princess this ain't a fairytale _

_I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet _

_Lead her up the stairwell _

_This ain't Hollywood this is a small town_

_I was a dreamer before you went and let me down _

_Now it's too late for you and your white horse to come around _

_Maybe I was naïve got lost in your eyes _

_And never really had a chance _

_My mistake I didn't know to be in love _

_You had to fight to have the upper hand _

_I had so many dreams about you and me _

_Happy endings well now_

_I know I'm not a princess this ain't a fairytale _

_I'm not the one you'll sweep off her feet _

_Lead her up the stairwell _

_This ain't Hollywood this is a small town _

_I was a dreamer before you went and let me down _

_Now it's too late for you and your white horse to come around_

_And there you are on your knees_

_Begging for forgiveness begging for me_

_Just like I always wanted but I'm so sorry_

_Cause I'm not your princess this ain't a fairytale_

_I'm gonna find someone someday_

_Who might actually treat me well_

_This is a big world that was a small town_

_There in my rearview mirror disappearing now_

_And it's too late for you and your white horse_

_Now it's too late for you and your white horse_

_To catch me now._

"Good song. Maybe I'll have to check that one out." She listened carefully for the song title and artist. "I'll have to see about getting some of her music. She's good."

She continued driving knowing that the truck was going to eat up a lot of money in gas. She only hoped that when the gauge started to get low she could find a station quick enough.

****

"Sam, has there been any sign of the truck anywhere?"

"Sorry, Chief. Nothing. We've searched an almost seventy-five mile radius."

"Have you guys slept at all?"

"Searching in shifts, Chief. No worries."

"Okay." Charlie sounded defeated, like he was giving up. "See you boys tomorrow." He walked into the house and closed the door.

Sam turned to the rest of the pack. "Okay, guys. Back to Billy's. We need to find her. If those bloodsuckers took her, we'll hunt them until we bring her home safe."

****

Charlie walked up the stairs and stopped at Bella's bedroom door. Taking a deep breath, he grasped the doorknob and opened the door.

Sitting down on her bed, he looked around the room. "Why, Bella? Where are you? Why did you run?"

Hearing a soft hum from her desk he looked over. Her tower was still on. He flipped on the monitor and read the document that came up. He was furious.

He pulled up her address book and searched for the Cullens. The first one he found was Carlisle's number. He picked up the phone and dialed.

"Hello?"

"Carlisle? Is that you?"

"Charlie? Charlie, what's wrong? How did you get my number?"

"From Bella's computer. Have you seen her?"

"No. Why? What happened, Charlie?"

"She ran off. She left yesterday and we have no clue where she is." Charlie's face was streaked with tears. He just wanted to know that his daughter was safe. "My daughter is missing and she left a note on her computer to your family."

"A note? Charlie, please tell me what it says."

Charlie took a deep breath and read the note.

_Dear Cullens,_

_By the time you read this, if you ever do, the girl you knew as Bella Swan will be gone. She died of a broken heart in the woods the day that Edward abandoned her._

_All of you left. Most without saying goodbye. _

_I always knew that I wasn't good enough for you. But I wanted to say thank you for the time that you allowed me to be a small part of your lives._

_I also wanted you to know that while I will never forget, I've already forgiven you._

_Bella_

"Charlie, we're heading back. I don't know what happened but we'll help you look for her."

"No, Carlisle. There are some people in town that aren't real happy with your family right now."

"You mean from the reservation, don't you, Charlie?"

"I'm afraid so. Sorry."

"Okay, Charlie. I tell you what. We'll watch out for her here in LA. If we find her, we'll call you."

"Thanks, Carlisle. Keep in touch."

"I will, Chief. And let me know if there's anything we can do for you."

"Will do." Charlie hung up, buried his head in his arms and wept.

****

Carlisle turned to his family. "You all heard what Charlie said. We'll need to watch for Bella."

Alice looked at Carlisle. "Yesterday I saw that the truck's going to break down on her. She's going to hurt herself and get into a car that looks just like yours, Carlisle."

"You saw this?" She nodded. "Do you know where or when?" She shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Carlisle." She hung her head.

"No need to apologize, Alice. Your gift isn't perfect." Carlisle patted Alice's shoulder.

"I should have said something sooner."

"Alice, you said yourself that you didn't know where she was or when it happened. For all you knew she was still in Forks, safe and sound."

"She could be hurt somewhere and we don't know where she is."

"We'll find her. Jasper, you and Emmett will go back to Forks. Don't let the locals see you. See if you can track her scent. Get into her house if you need to and get something of hers to help you with that. Try to find out where she might have gone. Rose, I need you to check the internet and see if there's any trail there in cyberspace. Any sign of card usage or checks. Any hotel registrations or anything else that might give us a direction. Alice, keep trying to see her. Anything about her future at all would help."

Alice nodded and sat down on the couch to focus on Bella and where she might be.

****

Bella had made it into Idaho when the truck gave a sputter and died.

"Damn it! No!" she swore as she turned the key again. It wouldn't start. "You would choose now to die on me. Damn it!" She hit the steering wheel, splitting the skin on her hand open. "Great! Just great!"

She jumped out of the car and grabbed her bag out of the back. At least it didn't have a full tank of gas.

Starting to walk down the road, she found herself hoping that she could make the next town before dark. She doubted it.

"See what happens when you leave me alone, Edward. See what you've done to me," she muttered. She kicked a rock several times before kicking her own heel and tripping herself.

After about three miles or so, Bella heard a car coming down the road. It sounded so much like Carlisle's car that she turned around. The thought crossed her mind that Alice had had a vision of her in this trouble and had come to save her. A Mercedes S55 AMG pulled up next to her. The passenger side window rolled down.

"Can I give you --- Izzy?"

Bella bent down, recognizing the voice. "Rique? Is that really you?"

"Hop in, Izzy. I'll get you wherever you're going."

She opened the door and threw her bag in the back seat before climbing in.

"So where you heading, chica?"

"I don't know. Where do you call home nowadays?"

"Vegas, baby. Want to try it on for size?"

She shrugged, feeling more comfortable after finding out that the driver was someone she knew. "Sure. Why not?"

The driver laughed and pulled off.


	3. Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER: Not mine. The only thing that's mine is Enrique.

A/N: Thank you all for the shining reviews. I'm just waiting for a word as to what pairings you all think I should use.

* * *

Just about a day later, Bella and her friend pulled up in front of a really nice place just about in the middle of the Vegas Strip. "Wow. You stay here?"

"Sure do. Thanks to my brother, I don't have to put up with anything less than five stars." Enrique Morales shrugged. He didn't have to tell Bella what his brother did. As he remembered her, she had been a little goody-goody when they went to school in Phoenix.

He'd been two years ahead of her but he'd always been intrigued by the young woman. He had looked for her the last time that he'd been in Phoenix only to discover that she had moved to Forks, Washington to stay with her dad for a while so her mom could run with her new little boy-toy.

Heading there, he found out that her dad was chief of police in Forks. He walked away at that point knowing that if he showed up and started hanging with Bella that her dad would check him out. But on his way out of town, he'd seen someone he'd have sworn died almost fifteen years earlier. And they didn't look any different to him now than they had then.

"Hello, Mr. Morales. Good to have you back again sir."

"Thank you, Tony. Good to be home."

"This is home?"

"When I'm in Vegas it is, chica. And you can call it home too. As long as you like."

"This is too much."

"Wait till you see my suite." Putting an arm around her shoulders, he led her inside.

*****

"I've only found one hotel registration in Bella's name. It was in Port Angeles the night she disappeared."

"Her scent is fading all over Forks. We did catch it in Port Angeles but just at the hotel and at a bank. I showed her picture at the bank. One of the tellers remembered her. She closed out an account. She has cash," Jasper said. "I also scouted her room. She took the plane tickets. I don't know if she's actually going to use them or not. She might just decide to cash them in."

"Thank you all. Alice hasn't seen anymore of Bella's future yet. We'll just have to keep an eye out for her."

"Carlisle, there has to be more we can do. This is killing Charlie," Esme protested.

"I know, Esme. But I don't know what else to do. We both know that Jethro can't help us because this doesn't involve the Navy. I don't have the knowledge to get into Bella's computer and look for anything to tell us where she might go." Wrapping his arms around his wife, he pulled her in close. "We will find her."

"I hope so. This isn't easy on any of us. Alice is beside herself because she hasn't been able to see anything helpful. Edward called earlier and, while we were talking, he asked why I was reciting the Odyssey in Latin. I didn't tell him about Bella even though I wanted to. If anyone could find her, it would be him."

"I'm glad you didn't. Edward has been unstable enough since we left Forks. Something like this might just drive him over the edge. We could lose him completely."

"I just want to know what he said to her. Bella would never just run off like this. She's not like that. It had to have been something he said to her."

"I'll talk to him if she's not found in a week. I'll ask him what he said and explain things to him."

"Carlisle," Jasper said, pulling something out of his pocket. "While we were there, I went to the house. I could smell her tears all around the property and in the living room too. I found this on the piano. I think it's the note Charlie told you about. I felt so much just from picking it up. Sorrow, anger, loss. It drove me to my knees, it felt so strong."

Esme immediately reached out a hand to Jasper as if to take the letter only to draw it back suddenly. "Jasper, son, you're projecting." Carlisle's voice was gentle as he tightened his grip on Esme.

"Sorry." The flow of turbulent emotions ceased as Jasper once again closed off from the others. He walked to Alice who wrapped her arms around him.

Carlisle looked down at his wife. Then, he walked over to Jasper. "I know sometimes it's hard to control your ability, Jasper. Yours isn't an easy talent to live with. You just slipped a little. That's all."

"I shouldn't slip when it comes to that. I have over a hundred years of experience controlling it."

******

"What a place!" Bella whispered as she walked into Enrique's suite.

"Would you like to stay here while you get yourself established here in town?" When she looked at him as if trying to guess his ulterior motive, he held up his hands. "No ulterior motive. I have an extra room that I'm not using. I swear. That's all."

"I don't know. I mean won't it look strange for me to stay here with no job?"

"No one is going to bother you, Izzy. Not here. You can stay here while you work things out. No strings. I promise."

'_No one would think to look here for me. They all know that I'm not the kind to be in a place like this. Too extravagant. It would be perfect.'_

Then Edward's voice ran through her mind. She could almost hear him. "Don't do this, Bella. Go home. Be safe."

That made up her mind. "I'll stay. For a while." _'Take that, Edward.'_

"Let me show you to your room."

****

Later that night, Bella was trying to sleep. She couldn't so she was watching Underworld on TV.

A soft knock sounded at the door. "You okay, Izzy?"

"Just having trouble sleeping. That's all."

"Can I come in?"

"Sure." Rique walked into the room and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Why can't you sleep?"

"Long story. Short version: I was in love with someone and he dumped me. Every time I close my eyes, I see him dumping me all over again."

"I think I know something that might help. Will you try it?"

"Depends. What is it?"

"Just some warm milk with saffron in it. Nothing that can hurt you."

"Okay. I'll try it."

Enrique made a phone call and had some of the warm milk brought up. When he brought it to Bella she drank it down and curled up under her covers.

"Now just rest, Izzy. Everything's going to be okay." He kissed her forehead and left the room, turning out the lights as he went.

****

Bella had fallen asleep shortly after drinking the warm milk. Her dreams were mixed up but she remembered them vividly.

"_Bella, you don't belong here." _

_She turned around to see Edward standing there in a dimming light, just like that day in the woods. "What do you care? You left me, remember? You dumped me, telling me that I was just a distraction. You want me to follow a promise that I made. Do you remember the promise you made? It was a promise you could never keep. You can't make me forget_ _you. So tell me, why should I keep my promise when you can't possibly keep yours?"_

"_Bella, love, I was only trying to protect you."_

_"From what? From your brother's true nature? That whole situation was my fault. If I'd been more careful, that paper cut wouldn't have happened. The blood lust wouldn't have risen and he wouldn't have attacked. Besides, it was probably more than just his own hunger he was feeling. He's an empath, remember? He would have felt it if even one other person in the room had felt the same way."_

"_It would have happened again. Only maybe next time I wouldn't have been there to save you."_

"_It doesn't matter anymore. I left and you followed me. I must be sick. I leave to get away from my ghosts and my mind decides to bring them along."_

_She turned and walked away from the vampire she had loved with every ounce of her being. "Stay away, Edward. I'm done. I'm going to make myself a new life. One where I'm not reminded of how stupid I am every time I turn around."_

_Suddenly he was in front of her. "Bella, you don't belong here. This guy isn't good for you. I can see it when he looks at you. Please, just go home and be safe."_

"_I can't. I have no way to get there. The truck died and I don't have enough money to buy another vehicle. So even if I wanted to, I couldn't. Why don't you just go and find your next distraction? Maybe she'll be good enough for the family to keep around."  
_

_Bella turned her back and walked away, leaving Edward looking as if someone had just beaten his favorite dog right in front of him._

Even though she had that dream numerous times through the night, she felt well rested the next morning. For a change.

****

"Carlisle, I've been thinking about something. Alice said that the car that picked Bella up was just like yours. Now, Alice may not be a car person to my degree but she's been around me long enough to know quite a bit about cars. So I did a search on the internet for a Mercedes S55 AMG."

"How many?"

"More than we could want to check out. So I narrowed it down by body type and engine size and color. Made the numbers much more manageable."

"Good thinking, Rose. It's good to see that our time in Virginia wasn't wasted."

"No way. Abby was brilliant and I learned a lot from both her and Gibbs. Then I narrowed the search to your model year plus or minus two years. Got even better."

Carlisle smiled shaking his head. "You are much more like Abby than anyone gives you credit for."

Rosalie smiled. "Someone has to play counterpoint to your Gibbs. Anyway, I found seven hundred cars in the U.S. Only two in Washington state. I broke the rest out by state. We can start with Washington and work out from there. Of course, it would help if we had a license plate."

Alice got up from the couch. "How about Nevada? LOST BOY 1. Help any?"

"Excellent. I can find out where the last place is that car was seen and we can go from there."

"Did you see anything else? Is Bella okay?"

Alice shook her head, a sad looking covering her features. "Just the license plate." She walked back to the couch and sat back down.

"I hope we find her soon. I don't know how much longer we can hide this from Edward. Not to mention what it's doing to all of us." Carlisle worried that Alice would never recover if anything happened to Bella.

****

For the next several weeks, Bella spent time catching up with Enrique and just sitting by the pool. She was starting to get a little color. Something that she enjoyed immensely.

Now that her own complexion didn't remind her so much of her life in Forks, she decided that she wanted another change. "Rique, I need some help."

"What can I do for you, chica?"

"I want to have my hair done. I want it colored and maybe even cut."

Enrique smiled as he picked up the phone and handed it to her. "Would you like me to make the salon appointment or do you want to do it?"

"Go ahead. I'd like to get it done as soon as possible."

"No problem. Should be able to get you in some time today." He smiled even bigger. "Is that soon enough?"

She nodded. "Good."

****

Back in Forks, Charlie had almost given up hope. He had put a new message on his machine at the house. "You missed me. I'm sure that you know what to do. Leave a message at the tone. If this is Bella, I'm not mad at you, honey. Just let me know that you're okay."

Jacob was over at Charlie's house one night, not long after Bella disappeared, having dinner with him and Billy. They had started the tradition just after she'd left of having dinner with Charlie on Friday nights.

"Jacob, you don't look so good, son." Charlie sounded concerned. Jake seemed to be running a fever and wasn't as cheerful as he usually was.

"I'll be fine, Charlie. I think I just need a little extra sleep that's all."

"There's a really bad flu bug going around, Jake. I hope you didn't catch it."

"I'm tough, Charlie. I'll be fine."

As soon as dinner was done, Billy and Jake went home and Jake went to bed.

****

Two weeks went by without a word from his friend. Charlie started getting worried. But he put that aside.

Sam was still coming to him once a week with updates on the search they were still conducting. It amazed Charlie that the boys from the reservation were so dedicated to finding Bella. But he wasn't holding out any false hopes.

He just wasn't sure if his daughter was ever going to be found.

But suddenly, hope was renewed. Jake was back on his feet and had joined the boys in searching for Bella.

The first time Charlie saw him after his supposed sickness, he nodded. "So it finally happened to you too."

Both Billy and Jake looked at Charlie as if they didn't understand. "You phased. I noticed the growth spurts and now you're even bigger than you were before."

"How do you know about that?"

"Billy, don't you remember all the times I used to go to the bonfires with you and Sarah before Jake was born as well as when he was a baby? I know the legends. I figured it out just when you guys showed up today."

The look on Billy's face told Charlie that he had indeed forgotten the trips to the bonfires with his best friend. The elders had made the allowance for Charlie because of how close he was to Billy. Not that anyone had expected the Cullens to make a return engagement in Forks.

"I can't believe that you remember those days."

"Those were good days. I'm just sorry it had to happen this way."

"Charlie, the elders don't realize that you still remember the legends. It could be dangerous for you if they find out."

"Billy, why do you think I was not completely certain of letting my daughter date one of the Cullens? And the not-so-subtle hints you kept dropping to let her know that you knew what was going on in front of me were glaringly obvious to anyone who knew the stories."

"Charlie, you are one sneaky white man," Billy chuckled, holding out his hand to the man he had called friend for so long.

"Jake, you said you've rejoined the search. Have you found any trace?"

"Sorry, chief. Nothing that stands out. Of course, it's been almost five months now. Her scent has pretty well faded out. But we're still looking."

"Thank you, Jake. I really appreciate that."

"I'm not going to let them chase her away from us forever, Charlie. She means too much to all of us." The two shook hands and all three sat down to dinner.


	4. Chapter 4

DISCLAIMER: Not mine. I can wish though.

A/N: I need some help here guys. I still don't know what pairing I should use. I may figure it out as I write the next chapter. I'm just not sure. Please give me some input.

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Dear journal,

_I've been in Vegas for almost six months now. I'm staying with Enrique and having a blast. _

_Guess what? My complexion actually has a little color now. I started using a deep tanning oil and spending time in the sun. I have color. I don't look like one of THEM anymore. _

_I don't have a job unless you want to count signing for Enrique's packages for him when he's out. In return, he lets me stay in the suite and takes great care of me. It's something I've actually learned to enjoy. He orders me warm milk with saffron in it almost every night and I sleep like the dead._

_I cut and colored my hair too. It's only shoulder length now and black. _

_Thanks to Enrique I have more self confidence than ever before. I even wear heels now. Not high heels but eventually maybe._

_Good example: I went down to the pool yesterday in a string bikini with just a thin wrap over it which came off as soon as I got there. Eight different guys walked up and asked me if they could buy me a drink. Others just stared._

_Can you believe that? Guys staring at me? WOW!!!!_

_Anyway more later._

Bella put the journal away and finished off the warm milk on the bedside stand.

*****

EnPOV

I can't believe how naïve this girl is. She's been here for six months and she doesn't realize what's going on yet.

Don't get me wrong. She's a sweet kid but how has she survived this long with those blinders on?

The first few nights the milk that I order her actually had saffron in it. Not anymore though. I've been slipping a little something else to her each night. I doubt she could sleep without it now.

Back in high school, I knew there was a hidden hottie in there. Now that she's not so pale, the guys are going even more ga-ga for her than they did back then. I have to slate some of my boys to watch over her at the pool when she goes anymore. Don't want anyone messing with my girl. And that black hair suits her so much better in that shorter style.

I've been teaching her how to gamble. She loves it. She's even getting halfway decent at bluffing when she plays. Every little thing I can think of to get her more under my control. Eventually, I'll have her trapped so deep that she'll never escape me.

She'd been so excited recently. One of the bigger designers decided to do something wild this year and open his fall line here in Vegas. He asked her to be one of his models.

"Is that okay, Rique?"

"It's fine with me, Izzy. As long as it's something you want to do?"

"I'd kind of like to try it."

"Settled then. You do it. I'm expecting several packages today. Sign for them, baby?"

"Of course," she smiled. "Don't I always?" She reached up and kissed my cheek. I decided then that I was going to make my move just before the show.

*****

Two weeks later, I caught Bella trying to get the hang of walking in slightly higher heels than what she was used to her. She was a bit shaky on her feet.

"Lookin' good, Izzy." And she was. She'd been going to the gym for a while each morning and each evening, sitting by the pool everyday. Her muscle tone was breathtaking.

"Thank, Rique. I need to get used to these before the show." Suddenly, she stumbled. Would have gone face first if I hadn't caught her. "Thanks again."

As I set her on her feet, I was staring at her lips. I felt myself getting more than a little excited. I leaned in and kissed her lips gently.

Now I've always been told that I could seduce a nun. But personally I like it when they fight some. I like it a little rough.

Izzy started to respond. God, her lips tasted good! She tasted like strawberries and mangoes. I stroked my tongue across her lips and she opened them for me. Man, this girl knew how to kiss.

I pulled her up close to me. She could feel what I wanted from her. That was when I expected her to start fighting me. But, no, she wrapped her arms around my neck and pulled herself closer to me.

I grabbed her ass cheeks in both hands and started rocking her hips against mine. That was the moment. That was when she started fighting me. I held her for another couple of minutes, relishing her struggles before letting her stumble back from me.

"Chica, I don't know who taught you to kiss like that but I'd like to shake his hand. What else did he teach you?"

She just put a hand to her mouth and, with tears welling up in her eyes, ran off to her room, slamming the door behind her.

I chuckled. This might not be as hard as I thought.

****

Bella POV

I ran from Rique after our kiss. How could I do that? More important, how could he say such things afterward?"

I locked the door to my room and sank to the floor, silent tears streaming down my face.

'_I told you he was up to no good.'_

"Shut up, Edward."

'_Bella, you need to get out of here.'_

"I can't. I don't have a vehicle. My dad would never want me now anyway."

_'Your dad is worried about you, love. Call him. At least let him know that you're still alive.'_

"I – I don't know." Of course, I knew I was going to do it. I owed Charlie way too much to just forget about him.

'_Please, Bella. He needs to know. What if he's sick?'_

That got me moving. I went to my duffle bag and pulled out my cell phone. Dialing the number, my fingers shook. What is he was sick? What if he'd died?

"You missed me. I'm sure you know what to do. Leave a message at the tone. If this is Bella, I'm not mad at you, honey. Just let me know that you're okay."

Tears were running down my face. I heard the tone and spoke. "Dad, I love you. I'm okay. I just needed somewhere that I wasn't always reminded of Edward so that I could get my thoughts together. I'll call you again." I hung up.

_'If you need help and don't know who else to call, call Carlisle. The others changed their numbers. Carlisle kept his telling me that you might need someone to turn to. He didn't listen to me when I told him that we needed to make a complete and clean break.'_

"But he didn't say goodbye, did he? If he cares so much, why didn't he at least call me to say goodbye?"

_'I wouldn't let him. I told them all that you would get over it quicker if we just left. I was the only one. I couldn't stand the thought of just disappearing on you.'_

I must be crazy. Edward left me, telling me that he was no good for me but my mind apparently just couldn't let him go. I have been having conversations with him in my mind for six months now. I think I should be seeing a psychiatrist.

_'Bella, you aren't safe here. He's no good for you. For only the second time in my existence, I find myself scared. I don't like the feeling. Please, for Charlie if not for me, get out of here.'_

"I'll think about it, Edward. Leave me alone for now." His voice disappeared and I went to take a shower.

****

**Elsewhere**

Jake had been out running when he found the small junkyard in the middle of nowhere Idaho. He phased and walked over to check it out.

There at one edge of the junkyard was sitting the old truck Bella had been driving. He walked up to it and was looking inside the cab when the owner of the junkyard walked over.

"They don't build them like this anymore."

"No, sir. They don't. How long has this baby been sitting here?" Jake asked trying to sound as casual as he could. He had seen the faint traces of blood on the steering wheel and on the door.

"You seem awful young to be appreciating this piece of machinery."

"I rebuilt an engine in a truck much like this one for a friend of mine a little over a year ago. I've been looking to get my hands on another one for myself."

"Are you any good with these things?"

"Not to brag, but yes, sir, I am."

"How old are you, son?"

"Eighteen."

The old man looked him up and down. "You're pretty big even for eighteen."

"No small guys in my family." Jacob gave the man a big smile. "But anyway, how long has this beauty been here?"

"About six months. Someone found it abandoned at the side of the road about ten miles east of here. Interested?"

"How much?" Jake was getting down to business and he wanted Bella's truck back where it belonged.

"It doesn't run."

"Can I take a look?"

The guy shrugged. "Sure. Tell you what. Nobody around here wants it so if you can get it running, you can have it."

"Really?" Jake was trying to sound like an excited teenager. "That would be cool."

Jake popped the hood and started tinkering around the engine. He smiled to himself. Bella had warned him that she knew nothing about cars. All that was wrong was a few loose wires after bouncing over some of the back roads. He reconnected the wires solidly and slammed the hood.

Smiling at the guy, he climbed behind the wheel and turned the key which Bella had left in the ignition. The engine turned over like it had been waiting on him. The guy looked at Jake as if he suspected something. "I get the feeling that I've been had."

"Thanks, man. I'll see you around."

Jake drove away, eager to get home and turn the clues over to Charlie and Sam. Sam was the best tracker they had and maybe he could figure out which direction Bella had been heading when she left the truck.

****

"Billy, I'm on the way back. It's going to take me a while though."

"Why?"

"I'm in Bella's truck and you know how slow that thing is."

"Did you find Bella?"

"No. No Bella. But I did find some blood and she'd left the keys in the ignition."

"That doesn't sound like Bella."

"No. And the blood has me worried. I don't know what happened but the guy said the truck had been found about 10 miles east of where the junkyard was located."

"Sam's already on his way. He has the location of the junkyard from you. You might want to phase and tell him about the 10 miles east part."

"Will do. I'll take care of that here in about 20 minutes. He'll be closer then."

"Okay. Be careful, Jake. We still don't know what happened to Bella."

"If I find out that the Cullens staged this and took her away, so help me I'll tear each and every one of them apart."

Jake felt himself starting to tremble and pulled over to the side of the road.

"Jake, calm down. This isn't easy on any of us. And Charlie most of all. Bring the truck home, son. We'll find her and bring her home safely."

"We have to, Dad. We just have to."

*****

"Rique, what's going on? Why did you say that I couldn't go down to the pool without Micah and Daniel?"

The man sighed. "I didn't want to tell you this, Bella. I was just trying to protect you. I've been getting some hate mail. And enough people know that you're staying with me that they might try to hurt you to get to me. That's the only reason. I swear."

"Hate mail? What do you mean? Why would you be getting hate mail?"

"Because of my brother. Remember I told you that he was part owner in this hotel?" When she nodded, he continued. "Well, not too long ago, we had to kick some people out for trashing rooms and raising a lot of hell. They started sending hate mail to me here because I'm the one they saw. My brother is rarely here and I'm the only one who knows how to get a hold of him. Hell, anymore I don't even dare to leave the suite without at least two of the boys with me. Usually more."

She wrapped her arms around him and hugged him close. "I'm sorry, Rique. I promise, I won't give you any more trouble. I'll listen to what you tell me."

Letting go of him, she darted into her room. She pulled out her cell phone and dialed nine of the ten digits to call Carlisle. She couldn't take the controlling atmosphere any more. Enrique held sway of everything she did and she was starting to doubt some of the stories that he told her.

Her finger hovered over the final number that would connect her to the man who'd been a father figure to her when she needed the help.

_'Call him, Bella. He'll come for you.'_

She closed the phone. "I can't. I just can't do it." She put the cell phone back in her bag and sat down on her bed.


	5. Chapter 5

DISCLAIMER: nope not mine. But I can dream can't I?

A/N: I know it's been a long time since I updated this one. It just wasn't cooperating. I had to hold off a little bit. Anyway, here you go. A new chapter and I'm hoping the next one doesn't fight me as much.

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"Izzy, babe, would you be a doll and deliver this package to the address on this paper? I have to go take care of a few things this afternoon and it need to be delivered today."

"Sure, Enrique. No problem."

Enrique left the room with a smirk on his face. He started her on delivering packages for him almost two months ago. One more step to having her completely trapped in his world. Then, she won't have a choice but to submit to what ever he wanted her to do.

****

**Rio De Janeiro, Brazil**

The bronze haired man lifted the phone and looked at the screen. Yet another call from Carlisle that he hadn't answered.

She had to have moved on by now. It had been almost a year now. Surely she would have forgotten about him. Maybe Mike Newton had helped her.

It couldn't hurt to go back and see her. Just to see how happy she was now.

He packed up and started heading back north. He had to know that she was happy. That would make his pain worth it.

****

That night, Bella had been sitting with Enrique on the couch when he made a move. "Kiss me, Izzy. Come on. I know you think about the kiss we shared that afternoon."

"No, Rique. That was a mistake. You never should have kissed me."

"You kissed me back. I just want to see what else your little boyfriend taught you to do with those luscious lips. But I'll settle for a kiss."

"You promise you won't try anything else?"

"Word of honor." He leaned in and she tilted her head up to receive his kiss.

As they kissed, he leaned her back on the couch until she was laying down and he was practically on top of her. She pushed at him to no avail.

He pulled back after several minutes and grabbed the front of her shirt. "You'll do as you're told, chica. Otherwise, you might find yourself on a street corner trying to make enough to satisfy your pimp." He leaned into her ear. "And I can be a very hard pimp to satisfy."

He dropped Bella onto the couch and walked into his room. "Let me know what you decide, chica," he said just before the door closed behind him.

She ran into her room and pulled out her duffel bag. Digging all the way through it, she felt a wave of fear rising in her. Her cell phone was gone. All way of communicating with the Cullens was gone. She looked at the desk where the phone sat. It was gone too. Rique had now isolated her from calling anyone for help.

She threw herself down on the bed, sobbing. _'Alice, please see me. Please. I need you.'_

****

Alice was still on the couch. Everyone had been talking about the two weeks they were going to spend in Vegas because of the show. No one noticed Alice's silence until Esme asked her a question.

"Alice? Alice, did you --?" Esme asked stepping around to look at Alice's face. Her eyes looked as if she had cataracts and she was stone still.

Jasper sat down beside his wife when he heard Esme's gasp. "What is it, Alice? What do you see?"

"Bella's in a hotel room. So many lights shining in through the windows. She's curled up on a bed holding her stomach. Tears streaming down her face."

VISION

"_I told you that you owed me, chica. You can't do anything in this town without me finding out about it. Now that I've demonstrated what I can do to you, are you ready to wise up and play nice? Do what you're told?"_

"_I promise, Rique. Please. Can I have my milk now?" The tears streaking her face nearly broke Alice's heart. _

"_Of course, Angel. You just be a good girl and I'll make sure that you always have your milk." He walked out the door. _

"_I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I never meant for this to happen. I just wanted to get away. To go somewhere that I could heal and forget. Now look at me. No one would want me now. I'm nothing. Just another stupid addict."_

VISION ENDS

"Oh God!!! Bella!! We have to find her! We have to find her now!" Alice was dry-sobbing into Jasper's shoulder as she all but screamed the words.

"What did you see, honey?" Jasper asked gently. "What's happening to Bella?"

Alice shook her head. She couldn't break her family's hearts by telling them that their Bella, her best friend, was doing drugs. "It doesn't matter. I don't think that was the future. I think it was the present."

"But you never see the present," Esme protested.

"I know. But maybe my desire to see Bella and to make certain that she was alright allowed me to see. See what we did by just up and leaving the way we did." She looked up at Carlisle. "We were wrong. We never should have let Edward dictate to us that way. He doesn't run this family. We all help to make the decisions. We should have stayed. We should never have left. Then this never would have happened."

How could they argue with that?

*****

**Forks, Washington**

Edward crept up to the house where Bella's dad lived. Charlie was home, watching television with Billy Black and Jacob.

Charlie was sad though. It was like something was missing in the house. Then he realized. Bella wasn't there. Her scent was missing. How could her scent be missing? She still lived there didn't she?

"Jake, has Sam called with any more information?"

"No. In fact, he's starting back tomorrow. He misses everyone here and feels that he's pretty much reached the end of the trail. And he's our best tracker. If he can't find her, then she doesn't want to be found."

"I guess it's time to face the fact that my daughter isn't coming home," Charlie sighed. Edward stiffened.

_'Bella's not here? Where is she? What happened? I left her in the house. She was angry but I didn't think ….. You idiot! Of course you didn't think! She packed a bag and tried to follow you! She wouldn't just run off like so many kids do. She thought it through I'm sure and decided where would be the best place to look for you.'_

But then, Jake's and Billy's thoughts came through crystal clear. _'I wish that Edward Cullen had never come to Forks. He should have just left Bella alone instead of luring her in and making her love him. I still can't believe that she just ran off like that. Where could she have gone? The trail went cold in Idaho. That's where we found the truck, broken down in that junkyard. The blood on the steering wheel was so old that there wasn't much scent left for anyone to track. Sam tried. He tried so hard.'_

Bella ran away. Edward darted around the house and climbed the tree to Bella's window. Her room was spotless. He flipped on her antique computer and went looking for any signs that would tell him where she went. After all, he knew what he was doing. He'd learned something from their time in Virginia as well.

He found the text for the letter she had left in the house. It tore his heart out as he read the words she had typed on the screen. She thought she wasn't good enough for them? He wanted to shake her into some semblance of sense. They were the ones not good enough for her. She was an angel and he had to find her and make her see that.

Slipping out the window, he scurried down the tree only to find himself surrounded by five massive wolves. All of whom knew exactly who he was.

*****

Bella lay on her bed for several hours before noticing the growing pain in her stomach. She wasn't sure what was going on but she knew that she needed help.

Stumbling to the door, she pulled it open. Enrique sat on the couch. He looked up when she stumbled into the room. "What's wrong, Izzy?"

"I don't know, Rique. I feel sick. The only difference is that I haven't had my milk." Realization dawned. "What have you been putting in my milk?"

He smirked. "You just now figured that out, chica? Almost a year and only now do you realize that I've been slipping you something in your drinks. How does it feel to know that you've been taking drugs for almost a year now?"

"Why? Why would you do this to me?"

"Because this way, I get what I want. You completely under my control. Those packages that I've been having you sign for and most recently deliver for me? Those are drugs. Sent in by my brother for me to distribute to my dealers. And by giving you drugs I've made sure that you can't go to the cops."

"Rique, help me. Please." She wasn't above begging. This was worse than any illness she'd ever had. She just didn't know what to do.

"Are you ready to play nice? Do what I tell you to so you don't have to go through this again?"

"I will. Please help me."

"Go to your room. I'll bring you a fix in a few minutes."

Bella nodded and slumped into her bedroom with one hand holding her stomach. She knew that it was too late now. Her father would never want her back now that she was on drugs. Who knows what else Enrique was going to make her do before he got tired of his new play toy and dumped her?

*****

Alice had been inconsolable since the vision of Bella. Even Jasper's ability to manipulate emotions didn't work.

Finally, Carlisle started asking her about the lights she had seen in the window of Bella's room. He asked her for details about the room itself.

She told him the room had been luxurious as if in a five-star hotel. A large bed, private bath, LCD television set in the room. The sheets on the bed appeared to be satin or silk.

The lights outside the window were neon, flashing. Lots of red and yellow. One or two names stuck out in her mind. A sign that said Bellagio. That was all Carlisle needed to hear.

"She's in Vegas. She has to be. The descriptions you've given me describe it to a T. How long before that show you were talking about?"

"Still two weeks. Our reservations are set for our arrival in one week."

"Start getting ready. I'm going to send Jasper and Emmett ahead. Maybe they can figure out where exactly she is."

Alice ran off to her room to start packing as Jasper and Emmett were called into Carlisle's office.

"What do you want us to do?" Jasper asked.

"You two are going to Vegas on the next available flight. I want you to snoop around. See what you can find out about where Bella might be. Ask questions. Show her picture. Do what ever you have to in order to find her. Just try to stay under the radar."

Emmett nodded and left the room. As Jasper moved to follow him, Carlisle's hand on his arm made him stop and turn around. "Jasper, find my daughter. Make her safe if she isn't. Do whatever you have to. Even if it means bringing in the Major."

If it weren't for the intensity in Carlisle's eyes, Jasper might have been worried about the man's state of mind. But with it, Jasper only felt pity for whoever might be hurting Bella when they found her. "I'll make the calls on the way to the airport." Jasper's words reassured Carlisle. Someone might get hurt but he knew it wouldn't be any member of his family.


	6. Chapter 6

On the way to the airport, Jasper made several calls. Emmett caught bits and pieces of the conversations.

One call he listened to all the way through in the hopes of finding out what was going on.

"Peter, Jasper. Look, get the gear ready to roll. The God of War is coming out to play."

"What happened?"

Both Emmett and Peter listened closely as Jasper explained what he knew of the situation and what he planned to do about it. Emmett was impressed.

"So you're doing all of this with Carlisle's approval? I always knew that there was something about that guy that I liked. Charlotte's getting ready right now. We'll have everything ready to roll before you touch down in San Antonio. The jet will be waiting there to bring you on out to the ranch."

"Always knew there was a reason that I left you two alive. Good job, Peter. See you in about three hours."

He hung up and turned to Emmett. "I know you're wondering what's going on. I'll tell you all about it as we go. Just know this. Bella's life may well depend on how well you can play your part in all of this."

"No matter what it is, I'm in. No one messes with my little sister and lives to tell the tale."

Jasper nodded, a cold hard look on his face. "Okay. You've heard Rose and Alice and I'm sure even Carlisle talk about a man referred to only as Mr. Whitlock?"

"You must be kidding. You? You're the richest man to ever walk the planet? No press pictures ever. Never been in the tabloids even. Rumor has it that every paparazzi that ever came into an office with a picture of him was run off. No magazine would ever dare to offend him by publishing a picture without his permission and he doesn't give it." Emmett shook his head. "I should have known something was up. When you came to the family, you had more money than you should have had then. And it's only increased since then. You took to the money side of being part of the family easier than any of us. That alone should have been a dead give-away. Then, the fact of all the calls you made to Texas and the times you took off without so much as a word to explain where you were going or what you had done. Usually about the time we'd hear about Mr. Whitlock showing up somewhere and making some obscene purchase." He chuckled. "The fact that you've never used the credit cards that Esme and Carlisle gave you but you still dress like a millionaire. I should have pieced it together a long time ago."

"I knew you were smarter than the others gave you credit for. I don't think even Rose has it figured out yet. You are about to become my bodyguard. Now you don't have to remember a whole lot to play the part. No one touches me without my say so and the only people that get close to me are my lawyer and my private secretary. AKA Peter and Charlotte. However you do have to remember to control your strength. It would look kind of funny if my bodyguard ripped someone's hand off while stopping them for touching me."

"Got it. What else?" Emmett was determined to be exactly what was needed in order to protect his baby sister. "I'll do whatever it takes to make Bella safe again."

Jasper proceeded to lay out every last detail he had already worked out in his head. His mind was already starting to try to work out the rest of the stages. But some of it would depend on what happened once they reached Vegas.

****

Bella hadn't left her room in two days. Enrique walked into the room and sneered at the young woman. "Guess what, chica? You and me going to have a little party. Right here in this room. Just the two of us."

She sat up on the bed. "What are you talking about, Rique?"

He reached up and started unbuttoning his shirt. She shook her head and pulled herself up against the headboard of the bed. He laughed. "Now, angel, don't be like that. We gonna have us some fun." He dropped his shirt on the floor and advanced on the bed.

"Please don't do this, Rique. Please."

He laughed again. "Beg some more, chica. It only makes me harder."

She cowered into the headboard, shaking her head. The thought kept screaming through her mind, _'Please Alice, see me! Save me!'_

"If you going to be that way, chica, I'll have to bring in a couple of the boys to help me."

She shook her head some more. "Okay. If that's the way you want it, angel." He opened the bedroom door and two of his guys walked in. "Manny. Nico. Strip my little chica and then handcuff her to the headboard."

Bella felt her hands being pried from the headboard as she fought her hardest to keep this from happening. The only thing in her life that was still good and it was about to be taken from her by force.

****

Billy and Jake sat in the living room with Charlie talking about where the pack had searched. "Charlie, we've searched all over. We aren't about to give up but there's been no trace of her in almost a year. Nothing except that one phone call you got. We don't even know where she was calling from."

"I know. It seems kind of hopeless. I just –" They heard a rising growl from the back yard.

"The pack. They've cornered someone out there." Jake ran for the back door and flung it open to see Edward practically pinned against the tree by five huge, snarling wolves. "I've got him. Back off." As his pack mates backed up only slightly, Jake stepped forward. "Edward, if you make one wrong move, I'll tear you apart myself. Now, what are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see that Bella had moved on. That she was happy."

Jake scoffed and Charlie ran up next to him. "Happy? My daughter ran off because of you! We haven't been able to find her! She just disappeared! She called me in tears and left a message on my machine once in the past year! The pack has been searching for her almost nonstop for the past year! Most of the town just gave up after the first week. I have held out hope for a year." Tears were streaming down the chief's face as he told Edward all of this. "My daughter left a note for your family on her computer. She was heart-broken and it's all your fault. You made her think she wasn't good enough for you. That she wasn't worthy of your family's love."

"I lied to her. I had to leave to protect her. I knew that she would never let me go unless I hurt her. I had to make her believe that I didn't want her anymore. I could see that she wouldn't let me go. I didn't want to hurt her – it felt like it would kill me to do it – but I knew that if I couldn't convince her that I didn't love her anymore, it would just take her that much longer to get on with her life. I had hoped that, if she thought I'd moved on, so would she."

Just then, Edward's phone rang. He pulled it out to see Alice's number on it. "What is it, Alice?" Edward's face went even whiter than usual as he listened to her describe what she saw. "No. I won't let it happen." He listened a little longer. "Okay. I'm heading out."

He hung up and turned to Jacob. "Alice saw something. Bella's in Las Vegas. Something really bad is going to happen to her. The family's heading out tomorrow afternoon. I'm heading there now. I will take one or two of you with me."

Jake took a step closer. "I'll go with you. The pack will tell Sam."

Edward nodded and the two of them headed out.

****

Bella whimpered as she was handcuffed to the headboard. She had cringed in embarrassment when the two large men had stripped her down. She fought valiantly to keep them from handcuffing her to the bed. But they were so much bigger than she was that they won and now were standing near the foot of the bed.

"Rique, please don't do this. Please!" she begged. Rique was standing at the foot of the bed laughing as she fought to escape.

"Look, chica, this is the only thing I've asked of you all this time. I gave you a place to stay, something to do to feel useful. I helped you change your looks and your attitude in life. Give it up, baby. I know that you're not as innocent as you act. That kiss was all the proof I needed." The man turned to the desk as his cell phone started ringing.

He picked it up and flipped it open. "I told you I wasn't to be disturbed."

"Sir, Mr. Whitlock just arrived."

"Shit!" He flipped the phone closed and turned back to Bella. "I guess our little party is going to have to wait. Throw a sheet over her boys and just leave her there. I'll be back."

Enrique put his clothes back on and left the room. Manny followed him but Nico stopped in the doorway and looked back at Bella.

"Nico, please let me go. I'll leave Vegas and never come back. I swear. Please. You've been the closest thing to a friend I've had here. Don't let him do this to me. Please."

"Bella, I can't let you go. He would know. I'd be killed for it. I just can't."

"If it were your sister in a position like this wouldn't you want someone to help her?"

"Bella, this is different. You told us that you left everyone. You've only called your dad once since getting here and, according to you, no one else would care if you were alive or dead."

"I begging you, Nico. Please. Don't let this happen."

"I have to go, Bella. I'll see you later."

Nico walked out the door. Bella broke down in tears.

*****

Alice sat on her bed waiting for time to go to the airport. The visions of Bella's future were getting fuzzy. She couldn't see Edward at all anymore and she wasn't sure why.

The visions were coming on an almost constant basis now. Visions of Jasper and Bella flashed through her head so quickly that she couldn't focus on any details. She wanted to cry because, even though she saw the visions, she couldn't tell what exactly was going on.

Esme and Rosalie sat next to her, each with an arm around her shoulders as they shook.

Both were worried. Alice hadn't come out of her visions for hours and all she could tell them was that it was vision after vision. She couldn't make out any details and that scared her.

****

Jasper Michael Whitlock walked into the front lobby with his entourage. Emmett was in a three piece suit of black. Charlotte ran up to the desk. "Key card for Mr. Whitlock's apartment please."

"Of course. It's pleasure to have him again. It's been much too long."

"Six years to be exact." Charlotte took the key cards from the desk clerk and came back to Jasper's side.

"Here you go, Mr. Whitlock." In a low voice, Charlotte murmured at vampire speed, "Simpering idiots."

Jasper smiled at Charlotte. Just then, the manager of the hotel came around the desk. "Mr. Whitlock, sir, it's a great pleasure to see you again. Mr. Morales is also here. Would you like me to call him down for you?"

"You can call him and tell him I want to see him later in my apartment." Jasper was looking around as if bored. "Now if you don't mind, I'd like to go up to my apartment and relax after that long flight. Tell him to meet me there in two hours."

"Yes, sir. Not a problem." As the manager stepped out of the way, Jasper walked past him with an air of preoccupation.

Once they got in the elevator, Jasper relaxed a little. "Did you smell it, Emmett?"

"Bella's scent is all over down there. And in here. The freesia and strawberry scent is gone but it's still Bella."

"That delightful scent is something the two of you have dealt with for almost a year? I'm impressed. I don't know how you have ever managed to hold out against that scent."

"Peter, would you like to continue being of use to Charlotte?"

"I'm complimenting you on your will power, Jazz-man. That's all. I know mine isn't near as good."

"Just make sure you keep it that way."

****

"Mr. Whitlock said he wanted you to meet him in his apartment in two hours. That's the exact message that he told me to give you, Mr. Morales."

"Thank you, Aaron. I'll be sure to make sure that I'm there. Meanwhile, I have a few things to attend to in my room. No more interruptions. Am I understood?"

"Of course, sir."

Enrique walked back to the elevator and started the trip back to his own room. He felt himself starting to get hard thinking about the young woman he had handcuffed in the room. At the third floor, a couple of college girls got on the elevator.

"Did you hear? Mr. Whitlock is looking for someone here in Vegas. Apparently, she's the daughter of an old family friend. His assistant left several copies of the picture at the front desk."

"Did you pick up a picture?" her friend asked. "I'm sure he's put up some kind of reward for the woman."

"Reward isn't the word for what he's offering. He's putting out $50,000 for any information leading to the young woman's whereabouts. It's unbelievable. These other people must be really good friends of his to offer that kind of money."

One of the girls pulled out the picture that had been left at the front desk. Enrique smiled. So that's why his old friend had come to town. He was looking for Izzy. But how did the richest man in the world come to be friends with a small town police chief?

He watched the girls get out on the seventh floor. He definitely had some questions for Izzy when he got back. He couldn't wait to see how she reacted to the news that Jasper was here and, for some unknown reason, he was looking for her.

****

"What are you thinking, Jasper?" Emmett asked as he watched his brother pace the length of the living room.

"I think that Enrique might have something to do with the visions that Alice has been having of Bella. I think he's in touch with her. That's why I had Peter leave the pictures of her downstairs at the front desk."

"I have another genius for a brother," Emmett sighed, dropping his head into his hands.

"Emmett, you're not stupid. Hell, you figured me out before Rosalie did. I don't even think Esme has me completely figured out yet."

"What do we do if he doesn't know how to find her?"

"Peter has that all under control." Charlotte walked out of the room she and Peter were to share. "Nice look, Char."

"I couldn't exactly go out there looking like your secretary, could I?"

"Of course not." Charlotte had lost the strict schoolteacher hairstyle and the thick-rimmed glasses. She was now dressed in hot pink spandex pants with a matching hot pink tank top. Her hair was loose and wavy down her back. "Charlotte here is going on a little fact-finding mission. She now has Bella's scent to go on. She'll find our little lost Bella if she's in this hotel."

"See you boys in about an hour." And with that, Charlotte walked out of the room. The guys heard her in the hallway, talking to a couple of college girls.

"Isn't that Mr. Whitlock's apartment?" one of them asked, amazed.

"Yeah," Char cooed. "He's giving me a little time to walk off the ride. That cowboy is the reason Big 'N' Rich wrote that song."

"Which song?" the other queried.

"Save a horse, ride a cowboy. Got to get in my walk before he decides to get started on the next round. Boy will wear a girl out without even trying."

Emmett chuckled deep in his throat as he listened to Char walk away down the hall. "That is one insane woman."

"That's our Char," Peter and Jasper chorused.


	7. Chapter 7

DISCLAIMER: No way. Not mine. But hey, I'll keep dreaming.

A/N: I know. I know. It took forever to get this up. For those of you who have been patient, THANK YOU. Real life really sucks sometimes. I've had writer's block and been sick. Not to mention being unable to get online without going to the library. Hopefully the rest will be soon in coming.

* * *

Stepping off the elevator, Enrique saw a young woman walking down the hallway near his door. She was hot and he thought he might like to touch that. "Hello, pretty. Who might you be?"

"My name's Charlotte Hale. I can't seem to find my room."

"Maybe I can help you. What's your room number?"

"Well, the card said that I was in north wing of the hotel. Room 1244."

"Sweet thing, right now you're in the south wing. That might explain why you can't find your room."

"Silly me. Well. Thank you so much for helping me out. I'll just be heading out to the north wing. My sister's going to laugh at me for getting lost again." Charlotte headed down the hall.

Enrique smiled as he opened the door to his room. "That was nice. I wouldn't mind getting me a piece of that."

Once the door closed behind him, Charlotte slipped over to the supply closet next to his room and settled in to listen for information.

*****

"Well. Well. Well. Izzy, I didn't know you had such influential friends. Mr. Jasper Whitlock is in this very hotel. And he claims to be looking for the daughter of an old family friend. What do you know about that?"

"Who?" Bella was so frightened right then that the name didn't register.

"How did your dad get to be friends with the richest son of a bitch on the planet? What is Jasper Whitlock to him?"

"I don't know. I swear. Enrique, please…" Suddenly, realization dawned on Bella's face. "What's that name again?"

"Jasper Whitlock. Who is your father to him?"

"I didn't think any of them would find me here. Especially not him. I thought he'd be glad to see the last of me." Tears flowed down her face. "He won't be happy that he's got to keep me safe again."

"What are you talking about Izzy?"

"Jasper Whitlock. You see, I met him in Forks. He has a family that watches out for his property there. The Cullens. Come to find out, Charlie isn't my real father. Carlisle Cullen is. He's been friends with Jasper for years. I was dating Carlisle's adopted son when we found out that he was my real father. Edward is the one that dumped me and because of that, I ran from Forks. I needed to get my head together and I didn't think I could do it there. There were too many reminders of the good times that Edward and I had."

"Izzy, you're lying. That's not a smart move. You know that I could really hurt you."

"I'm not lying. I swear it." Bella had the brief thought that if he thought Jasper was looking to keep her safe that she wouldn't get raped.

"If you think your lies will protect you, think again, Izzy. I will find out why Jasper's looking for you. I will find out the truth and then, then you'll be sorry that you lied to me." He walked over to her and threw back the sheet. "You got a nice rack there, Izzy. I think I might have some real fun playing with them later. Maybe we'll pierce those pretty nipples."

Char heard everything. She had to fight her own anger down. It got harder when she heard the next part of the conversation.

"Please, Enrique. Please take these cuffs off. My wrists are getting raw."

"Oh no, chica. I think you look real good with them on. And that way I can keep you naked until I get my fill of you. You see. Jasper Whitlock isn't going to find you as long as I keep you here. And you know what? I don't think he'll even think to look here. Maybe other places in the hotel, but not my room." He leaned down close to Bella's face. "Maybe I'll catch that pretty little thing I saw in the hallway a few minutes ago and we'll come in here together and teach you a few things about what can be done with that hot little body you have. I want you to think about that for a little while. I have some business to take care of. I'll be back later, chica. No worries."

As he reached for the door, she cried out, "Enrique, please. Can I have my milk first?"

"You can have what you want when you ask me for it the right way. I know that it's not the milk you really want. You want the drugs that I've been putting in it. And if you don't want to ask me the right way, you don't get them."

He walked out the door and she curled up on the bed. Her stomach was starting to hurt and she was starting to get really shaky.

"Jasper, please. Don't find me. Let me die here," she whimpered, unaware that Charlotte heard every word she said.

****

Jasper was pacing in his apartment, waiting for Charlotte to return. He knew that Charlotte could handle anything a human threw her way, after all, he had taught her well after turning her. But it was Bella he was worried about. Bella who was so fragile. Bella, whose well-being was in question to the point that Carlisle had actually called ahead and made arrangements with the hospital closest to the hotel just based off of Alice's visions. He had called to inform Jasper of those arrangements just that morning.

"Bro, sit down. You're making me nervous." Emmett was getting fidgety. And a fidgety Emmett wasn't a good thing.

"Emmett, right now, it's either pace like an animal in a cage or kill someone. And right now, tearing apart the hotel in its entirety sounds better and better. I want to find Bella. Alice was so frightened. She didn't know what to do to help."

"I'm worried about her too, Jazz. But wearing a hole in the carpet isn't going to bring us any closer to her."

Jasper's phone rang. He snatched it up and put it to his ear. "Charlotte."

"I found her. She's in Enrique's room. Just like you said, boss. He's got her handcuffed to the bed."

Jasper felt his eyes burning. "I'll kill him."

"I'm going in after her as soon as the coast is clear. I think its pretty bad, Jazz. She was whimpering just after he left the room. She said, 'Please, Jasper. Don't find me. Let me die here.' She's sick, Jazz. Really sick."

"Char, just wait for us. She'll need a familiar face."

"I can't, Jazz. He's leaving the room now."

She hung up and Jasper threw his phone all the way across the room, shattering it against the far wall.

****

Char waited until there was no sign of Enrique or any of his goons before opening the door of the supply closet. She slipped over to the door of the suite and used the master key she'd swiped from one of the maids.

Carefully opening the main door, she looked around. She caught the scent she was looking for. She crept toward the door behind which she was certain the missing young woman was hidden.

She slowly and carefully opened the door.

****

"What is my daughter doing in Las Vegas?"

"Charlie, I don't have time to answer any questions. I need to go if I'm going to get there in time to help the family. Jake's going with me and he's already promised you that as soon as Bella is safe he'll call you and let you know how she is."

"If anything happens to her, I'll kill you, Edward. My daughter means more to me than any promise to uphold the law. Don't doubt that."

"Charlie, I have never considered you anything but a good father to the woman I love more than my own existence. You just proved how good a father you are."

"Just make sure you remember that. Because if you don't, I'll make sure the pack brings you back alive so that I can burn you slowly myself. I know what you are and I know how to destroy your kind." Charlie pointed to a small shed that was well-hidden behind his house. "I have everything I need right in there."

"I don't doubt it. No one who is as close to one of the Quileute elders as you are to Billy could not know the legends. Or how true they are." Edward shook his head in sorrow. "I'm sorry I dragged Bella into all of this."

"Don't be sorry. Be strong for my daughter. Bring her back to me."

"I will, Charlie. I don't care who I have to kill to do it. But I will bring her back." He looked Charlie straight in the eye. "If I don't, I want you to kill me."

Edward walked away from Charlie. "Don't worry. I will." Charlie muttered watching Edward and Jake walk toward the street.

****

"So how are we getting to Vegas?" Jake asked.

"The perfect car for this trip is sitting in the garage at my old house. I grant permission for you to cross the line in this instance."

"Always thinking of the treaty?"

"No. You were. I just figured I'd say it and take care of that right away." The two of them took off running.

They ran up to the garage door. Edward threw it open. "That can't be …" Jake whispered in awe.

"It is. A Bugati Veyron Sang Noir. I love this car almost as much as my Aston-Martin Vanquish. Let's go."

Jake climbed into the car. "You realize that if it weren't for you I never would have even seen one of these things? Let alone ride in one?"

"You would get along with Rosalie. If it weren't for the fact that you're natural enemies," Edward softly chuckled.

"Doesn't this car get like crap for gas mileage?"

"Not as bad since Rose got finished tweaking it. It's better but nowhere near as efficient as I'd like. That's the primary reason that I don't drive it very often."

The two rode in silence for many miles.

****

Jasper was frustrated. He had wanted Charlotte to wait for him. He wanted a familiar face to be the one Bella saw when she was rescued. But of course, he let his temper get the better of him and threw his phone before he could say it.

"Come on, Emmett. We're going after Bella."

Emmett stood up ready to follow Jasper into the jaws of hell in order to protect his baby sister. Peter stepped forward to go with them.

"Peter, stay here. It's bad enough that Char will probably get in there before we do. It's probably going to scare her that Char has red eyes."

The two men walked out of the room and headed downstairs. Peter just shook his head. "It's not her that's going to scare the hell out of the poor kid."

****

Walking into the room, Char was pretty unprepared for the sight that greeted her eyes.

Bella was naked and handcuffed to the headboard of a bed. Her wrists were raw. Her eyes were filled with tears.

"Who are you?" the young woman asked.

"My name is Charlotte. I'm here to get you out of here."

Bella cringed back against the headboard as Char approached the bed. Then, she saw her eyes.

"You're a human drinker."

"Yes. You know what I am. Aren't you afraid of me?"

"No. I'm glad you're here. I want you to kill me. Please. Don't let him ruin me completely."

Char gasped. She could smell as well as see the blood that flowed down Bella's arms from her yanking on the handcuffs.

Bella cocked her head to one side in order to expose her neck better to the vampire before her.

"I can't do that. I can't kill you."

"Of course you can. It'll be easy. I won't even fight."

"What's your name?"

"Bella. Bella Swan."

"Bella, I'm going to tell you the three reasons I can't kill you. Number one, I can smell the drugs in your system. I don't drink blood tainted by drugs. Number two, you, my dear girl, are in no state to know what you want right now."

Bella heaved a sigh as Charlotte reached over her and snapped the handcuffs off of her wrists. "And what would be number three?"

"That would be me, Bella," came the familiar Southern accent from the doorway. Bella sat up, trembling, as she noticed Emmett and Jasper standing in the open door.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: How's that for quick. I had two chapters ready so I just decided to go ahead and post both. I'm hoping to be able to get more done soon. But consider this a special treat for those of you who hung in there with me.

* * *

Bella stood behind Char, shaking so badly that the female thought she would start shaking as well. She could almost feel the fear radiating off of the young woman.

"Boss, I told you that I would bring her back."

"Charlotte Joanne Whitlock, I distinctly told you to wait for me. You disobeyed and I will take care of that later." Bella cringed behind Char, feeling for the woman.

"Major, I think we have bigger problems than you realize."

Just as the scent of Bella's blood hit the two males, Jasper realized just how dark Char's eyes were.

All Emmett noticed was the scent of blood. "What happened?" Emmett barked.

"Her wrists. She had obviously been yanking on the handcuffs that held her to the headboard. She tore the skin on them."

Jasper realized how much this was torturing Char, being that close to fresh blood and not draining Bella. "Let me take over, Char."

Bella took Char's hand in her own and clutched it with the desperation of a drowning person clinging to a rope which could save their life.

"Bella, let me take care of your wrists," Jasper said softly, stepping forward only to have Bella cringe away from him.

"Bella bear, please? Let us help you," Emmett tried. But she wouldn't look either one of them in the eye.

"Jazz, honey, why don't you two boys step out in the other room? I'll get her cleaned up and dressed and then we can worry about her wrists."

"Can you deal?" Jazz asked with a voice so low and fast that only a vampire could hear it.

"I'll be fine. After all, you're just in the other room and will more than likely tear me apart if I hurt her."

Jasper nodded, knowing what she was doing and turned to back Emmett out of the room.

Once the two were gone and the door closed behind them, Char turned to Bella. "It's okay now, honey. Let's get you dressed. How about some comfy pants and a loose T-shirt?"

Bella nodded. "My clothes are in that duffel bag."

Char quickly dug out some soft cotton sleep pants and a shirt that looked about three sizes too big for the young woman. "Do you want to take a shower?"

Bella was on the floor, tears streaming down her face as she held her stomach and bit her bottom lip to keep from crying out in pain. Kneeling beside her, the vampire brushed the soft locks away from her face. "A warm bath it is then."

****

Just as Jasper was making his presence known in Bella's room, Edward and Jacob pulled into Las Vegas. They had been arguing for the last 100 miles. Not unsurprisingly, it was about Bella.

As they got out of the car, Edward cast a long glance at Jake. "Let me do all the talking. I'm the more diplomatic of the two of us."

"Sure. Sure." Jake just brushed him off. The two walked into the front lobby of the hotel and headed straight for the desk. The young woman standing there was quite pretty. She definitely eyed up both young men as they approached.

"Can I help you, gentlemen?"

"My name is Edward Cullen. I'm looking for a friend of mine. Mr. Jasper Whitlock?"

"I'm sorry but I can't give out information on people who may or may not be staying here."

"Miss, I've traveled a very long way to see Mr. Whitlock. If he's staying here, you don't need to tell me. Just call him and let him know that I'm here. If he wants to see me, he'll tell you. If not then you can just go on pretending that he's not here."

He gave her that smile that had always dazzled Bella. The young woman picked up the phone and dialed a number. "Hello, Mr. Whitlock. This is Jenny at the front desk. There's an Edward Cullen here that says he came a very long way to see you. What do you want me to do?"

"Have one of the bellhops show him to my apartment and I'll be there shortly. Thank you, Jenny."

"Of course, Mr. Whitlock. I'll take care of it immediately." She hung up the phone, gesturing to one of the bellhops. "Michael will show you to his apartment. He asks that you stay there. He's taking care of some business and will join you there shortly."

"Thank you, Jenny. I really do appreciate this."

Edward and Jake followed the young man up to Jasper's rooms, not realizing that Jasper's 'business' was someone near and dear to both of them.

****

Jasper hung up the backup cell phone that he carried with him when he was in Vegas. "Edward's here. And I think he brought someone else. We need to get Bella to a hospital and on the medication to bring her off the drugs quickly."

"We're ready," announced Charlotte, escorting a pale and shaky Bella out of the room. Jasper noticed that her wrists were already bandaged.

"Nice job, Char. You've been working on your self-control I see."

"Didn't even take a sip, boss. Not that she didn't want me to. I think she still just wants to die but I think she's also resolved herself to the fact that none of us are going to allow that to happen as long as we have a choice."

Emmett walked toward her slowly. "Bella? Baby sis, can I carry you downstairs? It'll be easier on you?"

"I hate to be so much trouble," came her whispered voice.

"You could never be trouble for us. You're family."

She looked up at him, tears streaming down her face. "Family? How could I be family? You guys left me behind. Not a word. No good-bye, kiss off, screw you, nothing. Is that the definition of family? You guys left me without a word and Edward, he just dumped me. Told me that I wasn't good for him. That he didn't want me anymore. He was tired of playing human for me. He wanted to be who he really was."

"What did he say?" Jasper could feel anger bubbling up in the room and knew that part of it was Emmett. No big surprise there. No surprise that Charlotte was furious over Bella's words even though she had never met Bella until now. What surprised him, though, was how much of it was coming from himself. Edward had never told them what he'd said to Bella in the woods. Alice had known but hadn't told anyone because she knew what they would do to him should they find out. She had warned Jasper though that he hadn't been nice to Bella when he left her. She never would tell him exactly what was said though.

Even Rose would have torn him apart for his words. And she wasn't overly fond of the young woman in front of him.

"He said that where you guys were going wasn't the right place for me. He said that he didn't want me to come with him. I didn't know what to do. I wanted to scream and cry and throw things. I wanted to hit him. I wanted to rip open the stitches that Carlisle had done so nicely for me. Wanted him to be so tempted by my blood that he couldn't resist. Wanted him to drain me dry so that I wouldn't have to live with the knowledge that I was right all along."

"About what, Bella?" Jasper felt like cringing away from her anger and pain. But he knew that she had to get this all out or else she'd never heal.

"About not being good enough for him. He was always so perfect and I --- well let's face it. I'm just not. Not perfect. I never did understand what he saw in me. I guess it was just what he said. I was a distraction. Always so fragile. It was a game of 'How long can we keep the human alive in a house full of vampires'. I guess that's all I was to any of you." She had hung her head now. The anger had turned to self-loathing. She spoke in soft tones and Jasper could taste her tears on the air.

He walked over to Bella and placed one finger gently under her chin, pulling her face up to look at him. "Bella, I told you once before that you are worth it. I'm not going to say that I can't see why our actions a year ago might make you think otherwise but I still stand by my words. You are worth any and everything we go through for you. We have been completely miserable without you. Alice only just started shopping again two months ago. She had locked herself in our room and would only come out to hunt once in a while. Even that took a lot of pushing from all of us. She had to block her thoughts from Edward for so long that she wouldn't even talk to anyone. Would you like to know just how terrified she was when she started having visions of you again? When the visions broke through her every attempt to avoid them because Edward demanded that she not try to see your future? I can show you what she felt. Do you want to know?"

Bella shook her head. She was unsteady on her feet. "No. Because it doesn't matter anymore."

Just then, Bella passed out. Char caught her and Emmett reached out to take his little sister from her. "It'll look better if I carry her out of here."

"Be careful with her."

Emmett had the good grace to look insulted. "I would never drop her. And if I had known what Edward had said to her I would have killed him myself. That was rude. And he was raised better. By his human parents as well as Esme and Carlisle. As it stands now, I will be issuing a good beating when we get back."

"I know that he's waiting in your room for you, boss. Peter's already got the car waiting out front for you. What do you want me to do?"

"Go back to my room. Tell Edward that I know what he told Bella. And that he needs to be on the lookout for a beating when I get back from taking her to the hospital."

"You know what's going to happen when I tell him that she's in the hospital?"

"Yep. And I don't care what he thinks. You tell him that I said that he is to stay put. I need to talk to him when I get done making sure that she's okay and if he's not there when I come back I will hunt him down and destroy him."

"I'll tell him. Just promise me that when he tears me apart you'll take care of him."

"You tell him also that if he raises one finger against you, I will rip that finger off and shove it somewhere most unpleasant."

Char nodded and headed out the door. Jasper and Emmett followed.

In the lobby the group split. Jazz and Emmett headed out into the night to take the young woman to the hospital. Carlisle would want to see her as soon as the family arrived in a few hours.

Char, in the meantime, headed back to deliver the message to Edward. She knew that the reunion between Bella and Edward was not going to be pleasant. Oh well, maybe the self-righteous little prick would finally get taken down a peg or two.

****

Jasper walked into the hospital emergency room with Bella cradled gently in his arms as if she were the most precious thing in the world. He walked up to registration and smiled at the nurse. "My name is Jasper Whitlock and I believe Carlisle Cullen called regarding treatment for one Bella Swan."

"Of course, Mr. Whitlock. We've been wondering when she would arrive. I take it that this is the young lady Dr. Cullen called about?" At Jasper's nod, she nodded. "We have a room already set up for her treatment. If you'll just follow me."

She led the two vampires through the ward to a room in an isolated corner. Jasper's nose, like Emmett's was wrinkled up through most of the walk. Neither one liked the smell of hospitals. As they walked, Jasper told the nurse that he was aware that she'd been surreptitiously given drugs for the past year but he wasn't sure what or how much. The nurse nodded and told him that they'd start with a basic drug to help wean her off the other at a low dosage. They could work from there.

Jasper gently placed Bella on the hospital bed (something he and Emmett agreed that they'd seen far too often since meeting the young woman) before stepping back and allowing the nurse to do her job in getting the IV set up and the monitors attached to Bella's body.

Emmett stepped out of the room the minute the nurse began prepping her arm for the IV. Jasper stayed until the nurse left the room and then he stepped out to have a word with his brother.

Emmett's eyes looked as if they would overflow with tears if they could. "How could we leave her behind? Alice had to have seen something of how this would turn out."

Jasper hated himself for what he was about to do. "She did. Right after we left. She told me a little but not anyone else. Because of the pain it caused her, she blocked it from Edward and didn't say anything to anyone. She didn't want to hurt everyone. Think about it Em. He told her that she wasn't to look at Bella's future ever again. That he would hate her if she did." He looked deep into his brother's wounded eyes. "You know Alice. She can't stand to have anyone mad at her, let alone hating her."

"I know, Jazz. But this is Bella. Her best friend. How could she know what was going to happen to her and not say anything. She claimed to love Bella as a sister. Is it any wonder that she thinks she's a burden to us?"

"I know, man. But we were all convinced that this was what was best for Bella. That she'd be safer without us around. Of course, she'd do the one thing that would bring her the most danger she could find short of running into a nomad."

"Bella's definitely a danger magnet. Jazz, what's she going to say when she finds out that he's here?"

"I don't know. Her emotional state is seriously fragile right now. I don't even like knowing how she's feeling right now. She thinks she deserves nothing more than what that ass was doing to her. She feels like she's worthless and hates herself right now."

"Is this our fault, Jazz?" Emmett may have been a big bad vampire but his heart was definitely different. It was the softest part of him.

"I think it is, Em. I'm not trying to be mean but I really think this is all our fault. Mine for trying to drain her on her birthday over a stupid paper cut. Edward's for leaving her alone in the woods that night and being so cruel. The rest because no one thought about her feelings in all this mess. We all just packed up and left because that was what Edward said we should do. That was wrong on so many levels. We called her family and yet walked away as if she didn't mean anything."

Emmett bowed his head. Jasper knew what was going through his 'little brother's' head because the same thing was going through his. _'Is it any wonder she feels so worthless right now? After what we did to her?'_

The two of them sat down to wait for the family to arrive.

****

A few hours later, Carlisle stepped into the hospital and walked up to the registration desk. "My name is Dr. Carlisle Cullen. I called about setting up some care for a young woman. Has she been brought in yet?"

"Right this way, Dr. Cullen," another nurse said from the entrance doors to the ER. "I have her back here."

Carlisle followed the young woman to the door of the room where Bella was laying. He noticed his sons sitting in front of it like guards.

"I'll be right back out to talk to the two of you." He waited until both had nodded before walking into Bella's room. He sighed. He could see the tortured emotions on both of his sons' faces. He was almost afraid to face the young woman in that room. Especially after everything his family had put her through.


	9. Chapter 9

Charlotte walked into Jasper's apartment with thoughts of how Bella had looked cuffed to that bed.

"Where is she?" Edward growled as he pinned her to the wall.

"Let me go, pup. I have a message for you from Jasper." Edward reluctantly dropped the other vampire and stared at her. "He said that you are to stay here. If you leave this room, he will hunt you down and tear you apart. He'll be back before long. He wanted to get her to the hospital and is probably going to stay there until Carlisle gets here." She got right up in his face. "And if I were you, I would follow his instructions to the letter. That's not Jasper Hale you're dealing with right now. It's Mr. Whitlock. Or as some of us know him, Major Jasper Whitlock. And he's not happy. Not with you. And not with the human that put Bella in that hospital room."

"Where's Emmett?"

"At the hospital. You really don't think that Mr. Whitlock would be out in public without his bodyguard do you?"

Edward shook his head. "I still can't believe that Jasper kept that hidden so well for so long. Even Alice didn't know until Jasper left the house the other day."

"Jasper knows how to keep his mouth shut. How is it that you think Maria never found out about Peter and I escaping from her?"

"Do I have to stay?" Jacob looked pained. "I don't know how much longer I can stand the smell."

"Don't whine. You can go wait by the pool if you want to. Just don't leave the property."

"As if I have anywhere better to be. I'm acting as the pack's rep here. I have to report back as soon as I know how Bella is." Jake shrugged and walked out the door, heading for the pool. Maybe he'd get lucky and find his imprint. Maybe.

"So, how does it feel to know that she ran off and ended up in this situation because of you?" Charlotte asked, sitting down on the couch and looking up at Edward. His eyes widened when he caught drift of what Jasper had told her.

"He said that? He told you that I couldn't touch you?"

"More than that. He said, and I quote, you tell him also that if he raises one finger against you, I will rip that finger off and shove it somewhere most unpleasant." She smirked as Edward glared at her. She started pulling forward all the damage that she'd seen. The bloody wrists and emaciated form. The tears. The tremors that had rattled her poor body. The self-hatred painted across her face. The words that she'd heard Bella sob before finding her.

Edward collapsed to his knees, burying his face in his hands. But then she pulled the final trick: she showed Edward the whispered conversation that she and Bella had while Bella was in the tub.

His eyes came up to meet hers. "That bastard drugged her? He drugged her for a year and then tried to tell her that she owed him for everything he had done for her?"

He saw Enrique's face in her mind as she pictured the things she'd like to do to him. He memorized the cruel lines and the harsh planes, wanting to torture him almost to death for each and every time he drugged her.

"Don't think about it too hard. Jasper's already got a plan in place to hang Enrique out to dry. The man's been walking all over my family for too long. Big brother has had enough." She brought her head up a little higher. "Although maybe I should have let him bring me into the room. I could have snapped his neck for him and then Bella would have been free anyway."

"Char, honey, you know that Jazz would have had to punish you for interfering in his plans like that," Peter said, walking into the room. "Hello, Edward. How are you?"

"Can you both just stop thinking so hard? I don't need to know about those things." He walked into the bathroom and took a shower until Jasper came back.

When Carlisle came back out of Bella's room, he held a chart in his hands. "How is she?" Emmett asked, jumping to his feet.

"Calm down, Emmett. We won't be able to take her back with us for a while. Apparently, from this blood test they ran, she was given heroin. Just enough to make her sleep deeply for the past year. It won't take them long to flush it from her system but she apparently is more than a little malnourished as well. She's in good shape though so that hasn't been happening for long. But they still want to keep her for a few days. I think it would be best if at least one of us was with her the whole time."

"May I be first, Carlisle? With my gift, maybe I can help her come to terms with just how sorry all of us are to have left her alone like that."

"That might be a good thing, Jasper. Thank you. Of course with your alter ego in place, that means that Emmett will have to stay here too. After all, Mr. Whitlock never goes out in public without his bodyguard." The look on Carlisle's face told Jasper that his father figure knew that Emmett didn't want to leave the most vulnerable member of their family for any reason. Jasper understood. He didn't want to leave her either.

"That's right. I guess, Emmett, that means you'll have to postpone your reunion with Rosalie for a little while. You're going to have to stay here with me. After all, you are my bodyguard and I can't be in the public eye without you."

Emmett just gave that crooked grin that they had missed so much over the past year. "Thank you," he said softly. "She needs all of us though. Maybe next could be Alice or Esme?"

"I think what we'll do is switch out every four hours. I don't want anyone getting suspicious of us being here." Carlisle had a point. These people knew nothing about them and it would be better to keep it that way. If anyone here found out about what they were it could spell more trouble than they needed right now. "But, Jasper, you'll probably need to be here more often than any of us. Probably every other shift. She's going to need your help with the emotional side of this whole thing."

"I understand, Carlisle. I'm ready to help. Since I was the final straw in the decision to leave Forks and Bella, the least I can do is help her to deal with these painful emotions."

"Jasper, …" Carlisle started.

"It wasn't your fault, Jazz. She's Edward's singer. Just her cutting her finger would have driven him into a frenzy. You reacted to that." When both of the stopped to stare at him, Emmett shrugged. "Did you both forget that I've met two singers in my time? Neither one survived. I remember the sensation of the blood calling to you. I know how potent it can be."

Carlisle and Jasper both nodded. Carlisle remembered both instances while Jasper remembered just one. Neither one was pretty. Carlisle sighed. Jasper was going to have the raw end of the deal. He had to deal with Bella's emotions here and everyone else's at the hotel, especially Edward's.

Carlisle had seen it before. When they had first left, Edward had been adamant that no one stay in contact with Bella or Charlie. He believed it was best for everyone to make a clean break.

But Carlisle had gone behind his son's back and made sure to leave his cell phone number active after everyone else had changed theirs. He didn't want to completely sever the tie to his human daughter.

That was part of the reason Edward had left the family. He had found out that Carlisle, of all people, had ignored him and kept a link to Forks.

Carlisle quickly briefed his sons on the possible reactions that Bella could have to finding out what they were doing for her. He was certain that when she found out that Edward was here, it would get ugly very quickly.

He was also pretty certain that she would need all the support she could get. The next several days were not going to be easy. He could only wait and see what Bella's frame of mind was when she woke up.

Three days later, Jasper was at the hotel room with Edward, Rosalie, Emmett, Charlotte and Peter when the phone call came in.

"Jazz, she's awake." Alice's voice sounded small and hurt.

"What happened, Alice?"

"She said some things to Esme and I that weren't very nice. Esme left the room. She said she couldn't stand to be around Bella when she's like this."

Just then, every one in the room heard Bella screaming at the top of her lungs. "You bastards! You shouldn't have done this! I was where I belonged! Why couldn't you just leave me alone? I deserved what he was going to do to me! I deserved to be …."

"Bella! It's not true!" Alice yelled. They could tell she'd set her phone down and walked away from it.

"It is! I wasn't good enough for Edward and I obviously wasn't good enough for Enrique either." Bella's voice dropped from a scream to shamed sobbing. But they all still heard her as clearly as if she was in the room with them.

Emmett cringed. He knew Rose's story and he knew what had almost happened to Bella. He turned back toward Rose. Only to see that she was gone. "Rose? Rosie?" He started looking around the suite.

Rose slipped into the hospital as quietly as possible. Alice had told her what had happened to Bella and what the bastard had been ready to do. Emmett had been forced to restrain her to keep her from going after Enrique and ripping his throat out.

Now she just had to convince Bella that she didn't deserve that. Maybe she would be the only one who could.

She found the room rather quickly. Slipping inside, she went straight to Alice and wrapped her arms around the dark-haired vampire. "Rose, I don't know what to say to her."

"I think I do. But you might not want to be here for this."

"You're going to tell her your story aren't you?" Alice said, looking up at her sister. Rose just nodded. "May I stay?"

"Of course, you can. I won't chase you away, Alice. You know that. But you also know that my story is an ugly one."

"I know. But I don't know the whole story."

"Okay. But just let me tell it and have my say with her." Alice nodded. Rose let her go and walked to the side of the bed. She pulled up a chair and sat down. Alice went to the other side.

"What do you want, Rosalie?"

"I want to tell you why it is that I always seemed to hate you so much. I don't hate you. I'm jealous. You have what I want."

"What? A messed up life where you're in love with someone who uses you as a distraction from an eternity of boredom?"

"No. You are so much more than a distraction to my brother. He's just too pig-headed to be able to tell you that to your face. He loves you more than anyone else. The whole family does. That's why they all listened to Edward when he insisted that you'd be safer without us around."

"You said they. Why did you listen?"

"Because I didn't want to see you throw away the one thing that I want out of my existence. The one thing I can never have again. Maybe at first I was jealous because Edward wanted you but not me."

"But you and Emmett …"

"I never wanted Edward that way, Bella. I love him as a brother. The problem is that he's always irritated me. The problem is also that people have always wanted ME. Edward was never the least bit interested. It irritated me for the longest time. But I knew it wasn't personal. He was never interested in anyone until he met you. Not that you aren't pretty, Bella. But somehow he found you more attractive than me. My vanity is powerful enough that it really bothered me."

"You said at first. It stopped bothering you then? I mean, it so obvious that you are the most beautiful person in the entire world."

"It doesn't bother me anymore. But thank you."

"You still don't like me."

"I - - I don't like what you're willing to do for him. Don't you understand? It's nothing that you have done. It's what you want to do. You have _everything_. You have a whole life ahead of you. And you want to throw it away. I would trade you for your life in a heartbeat. If I could take the humanity you want to be rid of, I would do it in a heartbeat. You have the choice I didn't and you're choosing wrong."

The intensity on Rosalie's face almost scared Bella. She cringed away. Rose calmed down. "I thought I could do this calmly. Let me explain why I think you're choosing wrong."

When Bella nodded, Rose began her story.

By the end of Rose's story, Bella was in tears and Alice would have been if she could. "Now do you understand, Bella? Do you understand why I've been so resistant to you?"

Bella nodded. "If I agree to slow down and think about it for a while, will that help?"

Rose nodded, smiling a little. "It's a start."

Bella's tears started again. "But I'm not good enough for Edward. That's what he told me."

Rose wrapped her arms around Bella and looked at the phone that was still active in the chair. She knew that Edward had heard those words. But she really couldn't bring herself to care right then. Her human sister needed help to recover from the wounds Edward's over-inflated sense of responsibility had mercilessly carved into her soul.

The wounds were so deep that Rose wasn't sure that Bella would ever heal.


	10. Chapter 10

Three days later, the hospital was ready to release Bella. Rosalie, Esme and Alice accompanied Carlisle to bring their wayward member back to the family.

Edward hadn't yet been allowed to see Bella. He had fussed about it but he could see the logic. It was because of the callous things he'd said that she had taken off. Now, he had to try to fix the damage he'd done.

But Carlisle didn't think it would be good for Bella if he went to the hospital to see her. Her self-esteem had taken a serious blow when the family left her. It had only gotten worse when Enrique had turned on her.

Rose hadn't left Bella's side for any reason in three days. She now had something in common with the human. Not that Enrique had succeeded but his attempt had done more damage to Bella's fragile ego than the actual rape had done to Rose.

Walking into the lobby of the hotel, Rose was on one side of Bella. Alice was on the other. Esme was right behind her youngest daughter. And Carlisle led the way.

"Izzy, babe. There you are. Where've you been, chica?" Enrique's voice made Bella freeze in her tracks. Esme moved to whisper in her ear.

"Not to worry, Bella. Charlotte told us about the story you concocted for him."

"Don't you come near my daughter, you sick twisted freak," Carlisle intoned.

"Your daughter? This is Izzy Swan. Daughter of the Forks Police Chief."

"I don't think so. This is my daughter, Isabella Cullen. My biological daughter."

"What's her mother's name?"

"Renee. It's Renee Dwyer now. She was married to Charlie when the two of us met. It was a one night stand. Both of us were drunk and, well, things happened. I assure you, Bella is my daughter. Charlie put his name on the birth certificate when she was born to keep Renee out of a scandal."

"Izzy, come on back to the room. We can talk."

Bella just shook her head and cringed in closer to Rosalie who wrapped her arms around the young woman and pulled her in close. Rose crooned to the brunette in her arms as Alice placed a gentle hand on her back.

Enrique stepped closer to Bella only to find Carlisle in the way. "Move it, man. I want to talk to Izzy."

"Bella obviously doesn't want to talk to you. Leave us alone and let us go back to our room."

Rose started pulling Bella away from the man who had damaged her so badly. Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed her hair, pulling hard.

Bella cried out, scrabbling to maintain her grip on Rose. Alice took two steps forward and rammed the heel of her brand new Manolo Blanik shoes into his foot. "Leave my sister alone, creep!" she yelled.

Suddenly, Jasper was there, his hand on Enrique's wrist. "Let her go, Rique. You know I won't hesitate to …."

"To what, my friend?" Enrique spat. "You forget, I can hurt you so many ways that you can't even dream of."

Jasper leaned in and whispered to Enrique exactly what he would do to the man if he ever touched Bella again. Even Rosalie cringed at hearing what Jasper told the man. Emmett fought the urge to cup himself and cry.

"Now, are we quite clear about where I stand on the issue of where Bella belongs?" he growled into the man's ear.

Enrique's hand retreated to his side and he stepped away from the family. Alice skipped up to Jasper's side. "I have his blood on my brand new shoes," she whined.

"I'll buy you a new pair. Don't worry."

Jasper draped an arm around Alice's shoulders as the family made their way to the elevators. Bella was shaking so badly that Jasper had to use his gift for her to be able to walk under her own power. However, once the elevator doors closed behind them, she collapsed into Rose's arms sobbing so hard, Carlisle was afraid she might get sick.

She hadn't calmed down by the time they got to the floor they were staying on and so Emmett scooped her up into his arms. She buried her face into his shoulder and continued crying.

He carried his baby sister gently into the hotel room. Edward was sitting on the couch when they walked in. At the thought of what had happened to Bella in the lobby, he ran for the door.

Peter caught him and tossed him back across the room. "Stay put. The Major has everything under control. That scumbag will suffer. You can count on that."

Bella hadn't lifted her head from Emmett's shoulder yet. In fact, she seemed to be cowering closer to him as if to hide from Edward.

"Come with me, Bella," Rose said as she pulled Bella from Emmett's sheltering arms.

Emmett set the brunette down on her feet and she followed Rose, turning back at the bedroom door. "I'm sorry to be such a bother."

Jake felt the hot tears stream down his face. No one could deny the worthlessness in her tone. Edward crumpled to the floor, his shoulders heaving with his tearless sobs.

Jake knew he had to go and report in to Sam. What these creatures had put Bella through wasn't right. And now it looked like they expected her to just forgive them and let them waltz right back into her life as if they'd never left it.

"Bella, I'm only going to tell this one last time," Rose started, sitting on the bed with her youngest sister. "No matter what anyone said or did, you were never the reason we left. We left because Edward couldn't deal with the thought of the danger we represented to you."

"To ME, Rose. That's the point. He couldn't deal with danger to me and so he dumped me. And now he wants me to take him back, doesn't he?"

"What did he say to you that day?"

"He said that he didn't want me. He was tired of pretending to be something he's not. Human. He said … he said I wasn't good for him." Bella's whispered words ripped Rose's still heart out of her chest and restarted it just to crush it cruelly.

"Edward Anthony Cullen!" Rose shrieked. Bella fell to her knees, covering her ears. Tears were streaming down her face and she was truly frightened of Rose right then.

Edward sheepishly walked through the door. "Do you see what you did to her?" Rose demanded, pointing at the cowering Bella. "Have you figured it out yet? Do you realize that you claimed to love her and yet you treated her like a pet you got tired of? Does it matter to you that she loved you with more than her whole heart?"

"She would have gotten over me eventually," he said quietly.

"Right. And the way to do that was to place herself in a situation that could have killed her within another year. Not to mention Charlie. To loose her would kill him. Alice warned you about that shortly after you met her. She knew what it would do to him to loose his only child."

"But, Rose," he started.

"No. You listen to me. You caused this. And you should be the one to fix this. But I don't think you can. Because we let you do this to her. Therefore, we have to clean up your mess the way you've helped to clean up our messes. But you will help. It was our blind devotion to you that almost caused her to go through the one thing that can never be forgotten or forgiven." She looked at his downcast face. "Get out."

He left the room. Rose walked over to Bella and knelt down beside the young woman. "Bella?"

Bella cringed away from Rose. She had never seen the blonde that angry and it scared her.

"You scared the hell out of her, Rose," came Jasper's soft southern drawl through the door.

Rosalie sighed. "Bella, please don't be scared of me. I was angry at Edward. Not you. He pushed us to leave Forks and you. He didn't stop to think of the consequences and he didn't think about how you would feel about it. I wanted him to see just what his thoughtless words had done to you. Where they had left you."

Bella looked up at Rose. Hurt was in both women's eyes. "I'm sorry." Bella's whispered words reached Rose's ears.

"What do you have to be sorry for? We left you. We walked away without even so much as a kiss off. We should be the ones apologizing to you."

"You had to relive what had to be the worst memory of your life because of me. That's just not right."

"Bella, I relive that memory every time Emmett manages to sneak up on me and startle me. I relive it every time I see a wedding dress. Every time I see an image on the news of a woman who was raped. I can't escape that memory no matter what I do. It's always there and there's nothing I can do about it now. It's part of who I am. Just like this experience is part of who you are now. It will make you stronger and ultimately a better person as long as you don't let it beat you. It won't be easy. I won't lie to you and say that one day you'll wake up and not remember this whole thing anymore. That wouldn't be right. But I will tell you that the memories of it will fade. They won't hurt so much anymore."

"I just want to be over this."

"I, of all people, can understand that. Every single time that I cringe away from Emmett because he startles me, I wish that I could forget. You're lucky. You're still human and you have the chance to let the memories fade away. I don't have that chance."

Bella got up on her knees and wrapped her arms around Rose's neck. "Thank you, Rose. Thank you so much."

"For what?"

"For understanding me and trying to help."

"I will be here as long as you let me. I will do whatever I can to help you put this behind you." Rose hugged Bella as hard as she dared. After a moment, Rose pulled back. "Are you ready to face the others?"

She smiled sadly at her sister. "Not really but it would probably be a good idea to get this over with."

Rose smiled back. "I'll be right beside you the whole time."

She took Bella's hand and the two of them stood up. Bella clutched tightly at Rose when she reached out to open the door. Rose gently squeezed back.

The door opened. And Bella faced her family.


End file.
